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TRP: Mahto and Sami (Ilmatari Fun)
Jen: at 2:14 PM Day 117 in the B-Team Chronology. Skyport. What a hellhole of a city. Skyport kept surprising Mahto and not in a good way. He'd been in big cities before, and most were the same as as this one, with their crowds and noise, dirty gutters and narrow streets, gang controlled quarters and beggars at every corner. In Skyport, it was just so much more of it. If Mahto hadn't needed the money to feed himself (and buy the occasional pack of dreamweed), he'd given it all away. In fact, on his first walk to the market alone, he'd already handed out most of what he owned. Mahto hadn't left the house much since they'd got here, preferring the garden and staying away from the crowds and the trouble, but since it seemed he lived here now, he figured he'd better go out and get familiar with the city. Walking through the streets, he'd gradually begun feeling sicker and sicker at the sight of all this assorted misery. "Here, take this," he'd said to a small girl holding an even smaller boy by the hand and pressed two loafes of bread into their dirty fingers. "Let me help you," he offered to a man huddling in a side alley under a soaked blanket and used his magic to drive the water out of it. "Buy some medicine," and pressed a coin into the hand of a young half-elf woman with a terrible wet cough. He'd done this the whole way to the market and every time, he'd offered to pray with them for the kindness of Ilmater and every time, he'd gotten a wide eyed look and a turned back. Until he received no look but instead a hand gripping him by the shoulder, a numbing sensation washing over him as a spell took hold, and the spit of a paladin in his face as the man barked at Mahto, telling him how they'd execute him for his heresy. Mink: at 2:35 PM Skyport was filthy as ever, but he had missed it in his own way. Still, of Diva and Goro hadn't reached him then he would have never returned. He preferred traveling the lands, meeting new people, spreading the message of Ilmater in his own way, and generally not staying in one location. So here he was, winding his way through the people heading towards market. He had picked up something small as a gift for when he met Goro and he had every intention heading to the the last rumored location when Ilmater's name reached him. Fuck. Sami glanced around to find where it had come from and spotted a large man grip a smaller one by the shoulder. He shifted his bag as he walked over, moving it out of his way. "My goodness. That's not very nice," he commented as he came up behind the paladin. He reached and touched the paladin's shoulder, letting the spell whisper out through his fingers. "Kneel." The paladin dropped to his knees. Sami glanced towards the...monk? "How do you feel?' Jen: at 2:44 PM "Uh..." Mahto blinked a few times, shuddering as the holding spell slipped off him. "I'm... alright. I-" He did get far, since the paladin's fighters, who'd stayed back, now advanced on Mahto and the robed fellow. "Get your hands off him!" one shouted as he drew his sword. "Stop where you are and drop your weapons! In the name of the Church, now!" "Oh... uh-oh. We should probably run!" Mahto turned to bolt, pushing at the other's shoulder with both hands to get him him going. Mink: at 2:48 PM Huh. He should have been paying better attention. "Probably." Before Sami listened to the shove, he turned, shaking a dagger out of his sleeve into his hand. He flung it one of the fighters , watching it find its mark. He flipped the remaining others off before following the other half-elf. "I hope you have a place to go." Jen: at 3:03 PM "I- maybe?" Mahto didn't turn to look what his new friend was doing, dodging between people at a dead run, just hoping he'd follow. Right now Mahto's only plan was to bring as much distance between himself and those people who wanted to lop his head off for some reason as possible. They could try and make it back to Azriel's house but on second thought, maybe that was also a very bad idea. At this very moment, however, Mahto didn't have much time to debate that. He'd have to figure that one out as soon as he didn't need to concentrate on not running into something anymore. Mink: at 3:08 PM "Maybe?" Sami could hear the guards behind them and 'maybe' wasn't going to work. He slid to a stop and turned towards the guards. He silently said a prayer before he held out his hands. "Halt." The guards stopped. "Grovel." They dropped. "Fucking paladins." Sami watched them and he turned. "Better make up your mind where we're going before the spell ends." Jen: at 3:18 PM Mahto looked over his shoulder to see where his friend was, then performed an aprupt halt and turn on his heels when he saw him stopped. "What are you doing?" He called but instead of catching a sword, the man made their pursuers kneel. "Oh, shit!" Mahto stood still for a second, staring, then jerked back into motion. "This way! Come on!" Mahto sprinted back into the direction they'd come from. Which was probably a damn stupid idea but Azriel's house was that way and he knew only the way he'd come from the market. If they got lost in the city, he'd never find it again. Mink: at 3:19 PM "Why the fuck are you going that way?" Jen: at 3:20 PM "I know a place! You got a better idea?" Mink: at 3:24 PM He didn't. Sami inhaled softly and he followed his new-found friend, avoiding the still prone paladins along with the dead one. He had no idea where they were going, but anywhere was better than where they were. Jen: at 3:46 PM A small crowd had formed where their run had started. Mahto's eyes widened as he spotted the body lying on the ground in the midst of the people but he skipped past and didn't stop until they reached Azriel's house. He didn't have a key, so he hammered on the door until it swung open and he almost fell into Azriel's arms. The tiefling stepped aside, frowning and eyes shifting from Mahto to his friend outside. Mahto turned and dragged the man in, the slammed the door. Azriel raised an eyebrow, then sighed and left for his room. "I'll explain later," Mahto called after him, panting. He put a hand to the wall for support and took in a few deep breaths. Mink: at 3:49 PM Running was one of the last things Sami enjoyed doing, but they ran through the crowd, from the market, and some path the other half-elf knew. They stopped at a house were let inside by a tiefling that looked as if he had dealt with this often. A smile tughed at his lips. "What a time," he said through panted breaths, resting back against the door. He should probably practice running more. He chuckled at the thought and reached up to undo the ties and pins that held up his now-straggly hair. "Do you always have such fun times?" Jen: at 3:52 PM "I try not to," Mahto said with a half smile. "That was a close one. Thanks for helping me out... though I'm not sure what I did. Can't think of anything this time. Are all the city watch here like that?" Mink: at 3:56 PM "You're welcome." Sami smiled before laughing. "They are if you follow anyone but Helm." He paused. "It would probably be a good idea not to speak of Ilmater outside of here." Jen: at 3:59 PM "I'm not sure if I can ever go outside again," Mahto said with a worried look at the door. "One of them was dead. Did... was that you?" Mink: at 4:01 PM "They'll simmer down in a couple of days." Sami straightened and stretched his arms over his head before pulling at his clothes; he was going to need fresh ones. He arched an eyebrow. "...yes." Jen: at 4:09 PM "Oh." Mahto looked at him silent for a moment, then back at the door. "I mean.. he was about to kill me I guess." Still, sounded like the man had only been doing his job. There would've been other ways. "So... what does that mean? I can't worship Ilmater in Skyport? Why?" What a ridiculous thought. A whole city only serving one god and banning the one who took care of the suffering. No wonder there were so many of them around here. Mink: at 4:13 PM "I guess the Church of Helm has rights here." Sami shrugged. He had stayed at the abbey, but still hadn't fully figured out why other gods had to be pushed to the side. It didn't make much sense, but he also didn't feel like being executed over it. "They're not the nicest lot." He took a few steps inside, looking over the room. Nice, if shabby. "...did you come here without knowing that?" Jen: at 4:20 PM "Well...suppose so." Mahto followed, then moved past him to lead them into the kitchen where they could sit. "I didn't know anything about Skyport before coming here. Still don't really, it seem." He smiled and shrugged. "That was my first trip out alone. Good start, huh?" He sat down on a chair then and put his jacket and staff on the kitchen table. "By the way... if worshipping other gods is forbidden here, why'd you help me then?" Mink: at 4:26 PM Sami followed suit to the kitchen and dropped down into a chair once he spotted one. "The best start." He chuckled, stretching his legs out in front of him. "Oh." The monk hadn't noticed. "I follow Ilmater, too." Jen: at 4:36 PM Mahto sat up straight in his chair. "Oh, you do? You're the first one I met around here. Which... kinda makes sense now." He thought of the dead guardsman again. That... hadn't been very in line with the faith. Mahto supposed he had been a person in need, so the other had helped but killing someone for doing his work wasn't very proportionate. And it certainly didn't reduce the suffering in the world. Mahto wasn't about to question his new found friend on that right now, though. "I'm Mahto, by the way," he said instead, realizing they hadn't even exchanged names yet. Mink: at 4:45 PM Sami couldn't think of any followers he had met outside of the one across from him, at this moment. But, he had also lived a good portion of his life in this grimy, Helm-following city. It was part of the reason he had left. "Sami," he answered, sitting up and offering a hand to Mahto to shake. He leaned back once he let go. "How long have you been a follower?" December 14, 2018 Jen: at 9:05 AM "Oh, most of my live, really. I was..." he thought for a moment. "About seven or eight when I joined the monastery. I grew up in one. A monastery I mean, up in the mountains to the north east. Until, uhm..." Mahto trailed off before he mentioned how they'd thrown him out. Maybe not the best thing to tell a fellow worshipper. "I left about three years ago. Been wandering since. What about you?" Mink: at 9:12 AM "That must've been something." Sami had lived at the abbey, but it hadn't been like a monastery and he was a little envious of Mahto. "I think I was 15 when I left my village for Ilmater...hmm...started following him when I was 16?" He shrugged. "What was like in a monastery?" Jen: at 9:31 AM As an answer, Mahto rolled his eyes but smiled. "Not so bad. Just the most boring place on earth. And freezing ten months a year." He had always counted himself as a good follower of his god... just not such a good follower of rules, to which the elder monks could well attest. Most of his punishments for causing trouble had had something to do with either the cold or the tedium. "Basically all we did all way was pray, work or train. We got before sunrise for morning meditation, then cleared all the outside areas of the night's snow, then went to beat at each other for sticks. And only then we got breakfast. After that, more work and more praying." Sitting cross-legged in the stone gardens or the temple hall, listening to the elder chant and trying to fall into trance instead of sleep. Tending the gardens and animals, helping the temple priest with the ceremonies or, a highlight for every young acolyte, accompany a travelling monk to one of the many scattered mountain villages. Mahto recalled resenting it often, especially the strictness of the place and the spite of some of the other acolytes; it had been a good live, still. Sometimes he missed it. Mink: at 9:34 AM That was different, but Ilmater was also different than Loviatar. "Oh...that sounds nice," he said with a soft smile. Not the freezing, but the rest of it. "Why'd you leave?" Jen: at 9:41 AM "I...ah," he fumbled a bit, trying to sound like he was gathering his words and not just making up something to avoid the truth. "So... some monks stay at the monatery," he said, the words coming easier as he spoke. "They become elders and priests. But most become travellers. Our mission is to help where and how we can and to spread the kindness of our god. I... the priests thought it was time for me to go. So that's what I did." Mahto smiled again and after a brief pause added, "That was also what I was doing when you found me. Trying to help the people here, Ilmater knows they need it." Mink: at 9:45 AM "They do." Sami chuckled. Especially after Diva. This place was worse than when he had left, which was saying something given how it always was. "How many followers were there at the monastery?" Jen: at 9:50 AM "Hm, maybe... a few more than a hundred? I'm not sure, monks came and went and we also had visitors from other places." Some winters, there had been as many as two dozen. Travellers, herders or other followers who'd tried to cross the mountains and got stuck when early snow closed up the passes. "Did you have a temple to stay at?" Mink: at 9:55 AM That was more than he expected; maybe he should have left Skyport earlier and travelled that way. "No." He shook his head. "You're the first follower I've spoken with." Jen: at 9:58 AM Mahto gave Sami a sympathetic look. "That must've been hard. So, have you lived here in Skyport the whole time?" He must have been hiding his faith then. What a terrible thought. "How'd you come to Ilmater then?" Mink: at 10:05 AM "For a good part, yeah. I only left a couple of years ago." Sami smiled and shrugged before the smile slipped away. He pressed his tongue against the back of his teeth. He didn't hide it, but he was always wary and Mahto had grown up as a follower of Ilmater. "I...well...I started to have these dreams of a red string." They had been strange and he remembered being upset he could never grab it. "...I could never catch it then one day, after my mom told me to...well, to punish someone, I managed to grab it." He remembered the relief he had felt. It had been wonderful. Jen: at 10:10 AM Mahto's eyes grew wide. "A sign? You got a sign from Ilmater?" He'd heard of other monks and priests who had received such signs in their dreams or during meditation. They all went on a mission after that, to fullfil some kind of purpose. During his years in the monastery, one other monk had claimed to have been called to Calimport, to relief the people of an acient terror there, but he'd never returned. "What... happened?" Mink: at 10:13 AM "What do you mean?" Jen: at 10:15 AM "Oh. When you grabbed the string, I mean. Did you see an avatar of Ilmater or... how'd you know it was him?" Mink: at 10:21 AM "Oh. I did. He pointed me to the abbey here." Sami shrugged again. "Have you..not seen him?" Jen: at 10:24 AM "I, uhm... no." Mahti's smile faltered for a second and he glanced away. Then he grinned again. "Maybe he thought I wasn't doing so bad on my own and someone else would need his guidance more. Ah. Sorry, that wasn't meant to insult you." Mink: at 10:26 AM Sami grimaced before he shook his head. "Don't be sorry. I was living in a village that worshipped Loviatar." Jen: at 10:29 AM Loviatar. Mahto drew back unconsciously. He opened his mouth but had no words to say, so he closed it and put a hand over it. "Good lord," he finally brought out, muffled behind his fingers. Mink: at 10:32 AM Sami's nose wrinkled. "Yeah." He could agree with the sentiment. "... sorry. I don't, you know, follow her anymore or anything." Jen: at 12:47 PM "Ah... no." Mahto let his hand sink and straightened up. "I'm the one who should be sorry. I didn't mean... " he shook his head. "You've left her, that's what matter." He reached for his jacket and pulled out his pipe. "I don't know what you've done but our lord thought you're not beyond forgiveness and sent you a sign. I won't question that." Mahto smiled at Sami, then got up to light his pipe on the stove. Mink: at 12:52 PM Sami waved away the apology; he didn't need one and he knew that Loviatar and Ilmater were on opposite sides. He knew their opposition and he could never blame Mahto for his reaction. He watched as the monk got up to light his pipe, a familiar scent fluttering through the air. Mahto was full of surprises. "Do you have any to spare?" he asked with a smile as he fished through his bag. "I can trade." Jen: at 12:56 PM "Of course. Be my guest." He inhaled another deep draw and handed the pipe over. Mink: at 12:59 PM Sami leaned back in his chair to take the pipe that was offered him. He took a deep draw on it before handing it back. He released the smoke in soft circles before letting the rest stream out. "Your houseguests don't mind?" he asked with a smile. He looked back through his bag for what he was searching for, but couldn't find it so he gave up for the time. Jen: at 1:15 PM "They're more like my landlords." Mahto grinned and took the pipe back. "Azriel anyway. The one who opened. And no, I don't think they do or they would've said something a while ago." Mink: at 1:17 PM "Azriel?" Sami rocked back a little. "Was he that tiefling?" Jen: at 1:29 PM "Yep, that's the one." Mink: at 1:33 PM He looked like a landlord. "How'd you come about living with him?" Jen: at 2:43 PM "Oh, that's not a long story." The siblings had struck Mahto as friendly enough but he'd also sensed they had their secrets they'd rather not have strangers know. Still they had welcomed him in. "I met them at the Sanctuary of Eldath. He and his siblings were on the way to Skyport and we decided to travel together for more security." Mink: at 2:54 PM "Sounds adventurous. May I?" he asked, inquiring about the pipe again. "Go anywhere interesting?" Jen: at 3:42 PM Mahto held up a finger and stuffed the pipe again out of his pack before handing it over. "We've mostly been on the road together. Not too much to see there except trees." He grinned. "We did stop by some weird old house a few days ago though. There was... a ghost lady in there. One wild night." Mink: at 3:46 PM Sami took the pipe and was more than happy to light in order to take an inhale. "Fucking nuts," he agreed with a soft laugh. "Hopefully you got something better than a ghost lady out of it." He pulled at the collar of his robes, which always grew uncomfortably tight when he was smoking. "Never saw a ghost, but I'd get the fuck out of there." Soon he had it pulled off and laying on the chair. Jen: at 3:58 PM "Oh, we helped her. Or... at least we tried." He took the pipe from Sami and took a drag. "I got some coins out of it but most... most is gone already." Mahto glanced at the window through which he could see the street. "I gave most of it away to help some of the poor but... there's just so many of them. Can't help everyone and not with gold." Mink: at 4:03 PM "Yeah." Sami stretched out in his chair. "I ran into that out of here... there's only so much gold can do." He tried in other ways, but everyone varied. "...Have you tried baked goods?" He smiled. "Sometimes they're as good as gold." Jen: at 5:21 PM "Yes...yes I did. But there's only so much bread I can buy. And there's so many sick-" Mahto recalled, briefly, how he'd chosen to spend his time in the temple gardens or library rather than train in medicine and wound treatment. "I never learned real healing. There's not much I can do for them." Mink: at 5:23 PM Sami grimaced. "Yeah...I can heal a bit...maybe we should tag team. You do whatever it is you do and I'll get the healing." Jen: at 5:27 PM Mahto chuckled. "I've always been best at breaking things, unfortunately." He lifted his staff, jangling the bells on it. "I've been doing odd jobs since I left but most of the time I've spent helping travellers get places safely." Mink: at 5:29 PM "That's worthwhile." He was less capable in that department unless one counted the miscellaneous scuffles he had gotten into. He leaned back a little further. "Mmm...do you ever visit the bath houses?" Jen: at 5:35 PM "Oh, I love baths. But... no. I haven't been in one since coming here." There was a small bathing chamber in the house with a tub and a stove for heating water but that he had to do all the hauling and heating himself if he wanted to bathe . Bath houses were so much more comfortable. "Do you know a good place?" Mink: at 5:42 PM "There's one not far from here." Sami grinned. "We should go." Jen: at 5:47 PM "Yeah, agreed!" Mahto perked up a that, excited. Then he frowned. "But, uhm... do you mean, like, right now? Not sure we should show our faces outside again so soon." Mink: at 5:54 PM Sami would have agreed to go right now; he was in a good mood and Mahto was in a good mood. Then the monk brought up not showing their faces. "Oh...yeah..." He let out a soft him of thought. "...we can make our own!" Jen: at 5:55 PM "What? How?" Mink: at 5:56 PM Sami glanced about the room. "Got a pot and some water?" He grinned and made himself sit up, nearly toppling back in the process. "We can turn any place into a...sauna." Jen: at 6:17 PM Huh. Huh. That was actually not a bad idea. They'd have to heat up the stove and wait for the water to get hot enough but... at least they could soak without getting executed. And Azriel wouldn't begrudge them getting clean, righ? "Sure! There's plenty of pots. And we got a bathing chamber with a separate stove in it. A tub, too. Though... it's probably a close fit for two... yeah, maybe not. But we can steam that room." Mink: at 6:22 PM "Sounds like a plan!" Sami got to his feet and he scrounged for a couple of pots. "C'mon." He left his bag and robe behind as he searched for the bathroom. Once he found the right one with Mahto's help, he set about heating the stove followed by pots of water. He fit as many onto there as he could. "Perfect!" He smiled at Mahto as the water started to steam. "We won't be executed here." Jen: at 6:29 PM "I like any place I'm not executed," Mahto said and went to gather some towels. There was a block of stone set along the shorter wall where one could sit and scrub. He spread the towels over it, then stripped out of his pants. He'd have to leave them outside or they would get soaked. "Have you ever tried to smoke a pipe in a sauna? 'cause I haven't. I wonder why..." Mink: at 6:34 PM "I have not, but that sounds like a fucking awesome idea." Sami removed his pants and he made sure the water was steaming along before he settled into the scrub bench. "Should've brought food." End Title: Ilmatari Just Wanna Have Fun Summary: Sami was gift shopping and Mahto was helping people when paladins decided to interfere. One died. Then Mahto took Sami to Azriel's. They learned they worship the same god, got high, and took a bath. Category:Text Roleplay